Imam Khamenei to Lead Ritual Prayers at Ex-President’s Funeral

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei will perform the ritual ‘prayer for the deceased’ (Salat al-Mayyit) in the funeral of former Iranian president and chairman of the country’s Expediency Council Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani on Tuesday.

Imam Khamenei is planned to lead the prayers at the funeral service, due to be held at the University of Tehran, for the iconic cleric who died in Tehran at the age of 82 on Sunday.

Ayatollah Rafsanjani will be laid to rest at the mausoleum of late founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini south of Tehran.

Iran’s cabinet on Sunday declared three days of public mourning and announced Tuesday as public holiday following the death of the former president.

Five days of mourning will also be observed in the southern province of Kerman, where Ayatollah Rafsanjani’s hometown of Rafsanjan is located.

Ayatollah Rafsanjani was an influential figure in a campaign led by Imam Khomeini that resulted in the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979. The deceased became president for two terms and was the chairman of the Expediency Council for some 20 years.